Obsessed with Fire
by Shadow Assassin1
Summary: Hope moved to Montana to get away from painful memories.  He worked to save lives and protect others from fires.   Someone waned revenge on him and would stop at nothing to get it.   Hope is targeted and can he get there in time to save her and protect he
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

~Big Sky, Montana~

Hope looked at her place and thought that it was the perfect place to start a life. It was a Wildlife Reservation/ Veterinarian Clinic and it already had all of the wildlife and had all the equipment that she would need. All she needed now were employees and that would come in time. She had Rachel and some volunteers from the high school that was near here. Hope already put up an ad for work and hoped that people would start to come and ask about employment or to see the park.

"I finally did it, I finally finished my dream. Well at least the biggest one." Hope said smiling.

Hope knew that her family was not happy that she decided to move to Montana but she had to do her own thing. Her parents told her that it was a mistake but if it was then it was her mistake to make not theirs. She loved her parents but it was her time to be on her own and try to do what she wanted and so far it has gone real good. She had to take out some loans to do it but she hoped to be able to pay them off when the business started to pick up.

"What do you think of it?" Rachel asked coming up beside Hope.

"I think it is beautiful and that we will have a lot of business." Hope said smiling at her friend.

"I think so too, come on we need to go to the grocery store and stock up." Rachel said.

"Yes and I want to stop by these two breeders that I looked up, well three breeders." Hope said smiling.

"Of course. You found two German Shepherd breeders?" Rachel asked smiling at her friend.

"Yes, it wasn't too hard to find them. I have enough money left over for them and everything else. I also want to look at a Doberman breeder just to ask some questions." Hope said.

Rachel laughed and they got into their car and left to head off to the grocery store. Hope thought of her friend Rachel, Rachel had come with her from Arizona cause it was both of their dreams to live here. Though it was her dream to open the Wildlife Reservation/ Veterinarian Clinic, Rachel was behind her the whole way. She couldn't imagine her life without Rachel and the support she gave. Rachel was the one that helped Hope get on with her plan and not let her parents talk her out of it. She smiled she was glad that her friend was with her in this. When they got to the Grocery store they got out and went into and decided what they would need.

"We probably should have made a list." Rachel said laughing.

"Well probably, but I am pretty sure we can do it without it." Hope said chuckling.

"Well I guess we will need things for breakfast." Rachel said.

Hope nodded and they decided to get some cereal, oatmeal, and jelly. They also got bread and lunchmeat and cheese and all the condiments needed. Soon all they needed was the dog supplies and food, they soon got that and were up at the register waiting to pay for their things.

"I'll pay for this." Rachel said smiling.

"Thanks." Hope said chuckling.

Hope looked over and saw that a fire truck just came in and parked at the side of the Grocery store. She was caught by one of them; he was gorgeous, tall and broad shouldered. His face looked like it was carved of stone except for a few scars, and one bad burn scar that covered one side of his jaw and down his neck. The thing that lightened up his face were his eyes, they were a soft grey, warm. Hope blushed when he caught her looking at him; she quickly looked away and quickly left when they finished paying.

"What was that all about?" Rachel asked teasingly.

"Nothing something just caught my eye." Hope said blushing still.

"Oh, something not someone?" Rachel teased.

"Shut up." Hope said scowling and getting in the car after putting the groceries in the back.

Rachel chuckled and got in the car and they drove away and left to go see the breeders. When they got there Hope got over her embarrassment because she was far away from that man. She smiled when she saw the puppies and grew excited when she saw a solid black puppy.

"Hello, you must be, Hope." The woman said smiling.

"Yes I am." Hope said smiling.

"Well this is the litter. They are nine weeks old, and need to be potty trained, well the black one is almost potty trained." The woman said.

"Is the black one a male?" Hope asked.

"Yes, he is. He will be pretty big. Oh, by the way my name is Linda." Linda said.

"Nice to meet you, Linda. Can I hold the black one?" Hope asked smiling.

"Of course. Here you go." Linda said picking him up and handing him to Hope.

Hope smiled and laughed as the dog licked at her face, she knew that this was the dog for her.

"How much is he?" Hope said nuzzling the puppy.

"Well he is $400, the rest are $600. He is less just because not all people will go for the big dog and he will be big." Linda said hoping that she would make the sell.

"I'll take him. Has he had all his shots?" Hope asked.

"Yes, we do that when they get to the right age, there is only one shot he needs and he cannot get that until he is 6 months old." Linda said.

"Alright." Hope said.

Linda went into the house and got the paperwork and then brought it back out. Hope signed everything and gave the woman the money and then took the paper work that she needed and the cage that the woman provided and then got in the car and left.

"Well I got my first puppy and his name shall be Shadow." Hope said smiling.

Rachel smiled she liked the dog and thought that he would be a good guard dog. They got to the second and Hope chose a female that was brown and black but pretty big and she named her Bella. They left and got to the final breeder and she got out and asked some questions about the Doberman. She wanted to know if it would be good with other pets, and people. She ended up getting a male Doberman.

"Oh, just going to ask question's huh?" Rachel said laughing.

"Shut up, its not my fault that they were so cute. And the man said that the dogs would be fine with each other if they grew up together. And he would be good with people who are invited into the house and not a danger to those he protects." Hope said smiling.

"I know it was a good idea to get them when they are all young." Rachel said.

Hope sighed and they got home and put all the groceries away and got the dogs settled in their beds before they decided to go and watch some T.V.

"Well today was a good day, you got your dogs and we got the kitchen stocked." Rachel said.

"Yea today was a good day." Hope said sighing.

"What happened today at the grocery store?" Rachel asked.

"Nothing someone just caught my eye." Hope said.

"Oh who?" Rachel asked curious.

"Just a Firefighter that came into the store." Hope said hoping Rachel would leave it alone.

"Why?" Rachel asked.

"I don't know he just looked like I don't know a god. But the only flaw that I saw was a couple of scars on his face and a bad burn scar on one side of his jaw and neck. He was tall and broad shouldered, and his face looked like it was sculpted from stone. But his eyes were so soft and warm, they were a light mixed with a dark grey." Hope said smiling.

"And let me guess he caught you staring and you looked away embarrassed and that was why you blushed." Rachel said.

"Yes, but he was good looking, but someone like him wouldn't like someone like me." Hope said sighing.

"What do you mean someone like you?" Rachel asked.

"Well I am a little overweight and I have boyish features." Hope said.

"No you do not. You are beautiful." Rachel said.

"Oh, really well I didn't know you went that way Rachel." Hope said smirking.

"Oh shut up." Rachel said scowling though you could see that she was laughing on the inside.

"Well come on lets go check on all the animals and make sure they are settled in and everything is alright." Hope said.

They made there rounds and found that nothing was wrong so they decided to head back in. They sat on the couch for a while before they made dinner and then headed to bed for the night. The puppies slept in their cages inside Hope's room as they settled in for the night. Though that night Hope dreamed about the sexy firefighter that she saw today. She dreamt that he was interested in her and that he tired everything to make their time perfect. She dreamt that he was a perfect guy for her but she knew that guys like that did not go for girls like her.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Hope woke up that morning and smiled it was a good day, her first day at her job. She frowned as she heard a ring and then noticed that it was her cell phone. She decided to wait until after her shower and breakfast to deal with her phone. She got up and went into the bathroom and took a shower and then got dressed for the day. She decided to wear shorts and a t-shirt thinking that it was a beautiful day out and she didn't want to wear jeans. Plus she shaved and everything so she was good in that area. Hope grabbed her phone then went and got some breakfast and then looked at her missed call list. She sighed when she saw her mom had called. She went into the empty waiting room for the veterinarian clinic and called her back.

"Hello" Her mom said on the other end.

"Hi, you called?" Hope asked.

"Yes I wanted to see how you were doing." Her mom said.

"I am doing fine just getting everything all situated." Hope said.

"I really think that you should move back here." Her mom said.

"Mom I like it here. I just got everything situated, the animals are in their places and the building is built. Plus I have already hired some volunteers and employees." Hope said in exasperation at her mom's attempts to get her to move back to Arizona.

"I don't like that you are all the way in Montana." Her mom said softly.

"I know mom but I needed to branch off on my own." Hope said softly knowing that her mom just wanted all her children near her.

"Well, will you be able to come to your brother's wedding?" Her mom asked.

"I most likely will, but I don't know yet. Because I will have to find someone to run the business and I will just have to see what happens." Hope said knowing that her mom was going to get angry with that.

"How could you think of not going to his wedding?" Her mom asked angrily.

"Mom, its not like I want to miss it but I have just opened this business and I will have to find someone to watch it for me. I didn't say I wasn't I said that I might not be able to." Hope said already tired with this argument.

"You are just being selfish, Hope, you aren't even thinking about your brother." Her mom said furiously.

"I'm sorry you feel that way, mother but there is nothing that I can do. I will try my hardest to be there." Hope said and hung up and then sat heavily on one of the chairs.

Hope sighed she had to go to a meeting one more time with the real estate and get these last papers signed. Her mom just didn't understand and that was what hurt the most. Hope held back tears as she got to her car and drove down the high way near a cliff. All of the sudden Hope saw a car screaming towards her and she watched like it was in slow motion. She saw the type of car and the make before she covered her head as it hit her at full speed pushing her car half way off the cliff. Hope screamed as her car tilted forward almost going off the cliff. She looked behind her and saw that the car that hit her was speeding away. Then she forgot all about the car as her car shifted, she tried not to move but it was hard with the panic that was starting to come in. She saw some other people, one of them was on the phone and she hoped it was to call the police. She gasped as she felt pain in both of her legs, she looked down and she saw that her legs seemed to be bleeding from many different places. She saw that the windshield was broken and that metal was sticking out from under the wheel and part of it was stuck in her thigh of her right leg.

Hope didn't know if the metal piece went all the way through her leg or just part way through. She gasped and tried to feel under her leg and felt something hard and knew that it went all the way through. She looked herself over and noticed that she had some small wounds but the only serious wounds were on her legs. She tried not to panic as she felt the car shift forward again like it was losing its grip. She wished that the police or Firefighters would hurry because she didn't think that her car would hold for long. All of the sudden she heard sirens and she sighed with relief hoping that they could get her out before her car took her with it to her doom. She looked back and saw cops lining up and keeping the pedestrians' at bay while the Firefighters got out of the truck. Hope nearly groaned when she saw the Firefighter from before. She was kind of hoping that it was not him but soon forgot that thought when the car again fell forward a little bit.

"Alright guys we got to work fast! That car isn't going to hold on for long and we need to get this girl out and fast!" The Captain yelled to his crew.

Hope was relieved that they were finally here but she wished that they would hurry so she didn't die.

"Ma'm can you hear me?" The Captain asked calling down to her.

"Yes." Hope said trying to keep her voice steady but it shook.

"My name is Seth Evens and I am the Captain of the Fire Department 4. Everything is going to be all right, we are going to get you out of there. What's your name?" Seth asked.

"Hope." Hope said.

"Well, Hope can you tell me if you're hurt?" Seth asked.

"Yes." Hope said and gasped as she moved her leg.

"Where are you injured, Hope?" Seth asked.

"My legs. They have several deep cuts and my right leg has a metal rod through it all the way into the seat." Hope said.

"Alright, Hope, we are going to attach a chain to your car to keep it from falling and then I am going to send one of my Firefighters and he is going to get you free of the metal rod and then get you in a harness." Seth said.

"Alright." Hope said and leaned her head back and tried to take deep breaths, she was not going to allow herself to go into shock.

For what seemed like forever Hope sat in that car and got startled when she looked up to the side of her and saw one of the Firefighters gearing up to come to her. She did groan aloud when she saw that it was the Firefighter from the grocery store. She hoped that he didn't recognize her cause she did not want to explain why she stared at him. She watched as he was lowered to her and soon he was face to face with her.

"Why hello again." The Firefighter said with amusement.

"Hello." Hope said blushing and inwardly groaned, of course he would remember her just her luck.

"So I see you are in a bit of a jam." The Firefighter said as he slowly eased her door open.

"Yea you could say that. About to fall off a cliff after being rammed is quite the jam." Hope said smiling shakily.

"It's alright, Hope, I will get you out of here. My Name is Sage." Sage said softly.

"Nice to meet you, sorry it had to be under this situation." Hope said.

"I'm not, well I am sorry that this happened, but I am glad I got to meet such a beautiful woman." Sage said softly as he studied her leg and grimaced knowing that it was going to hurt when he cut it.

"Thank you." Hope said blushing.

"Your welcome. Now I am going to go back up for a second and get what I need to cut this piece of metal and get you out of here." Sage said looking at her; she was very beautiful even though she was a little pale.

Hope nodded and watched as he left, she knew he was going to be back but she was still a little afraid. Her leg was really throbbing now, the adrenaline that coursed through her was now gone and she could feel all the cuts and bruises. It felt like she was thrown around a couple hundred times. She sighed with relief when Sage was back but gazed warily at the cutting tool that he had with him.

"Don't worry it will hurt a little but not a lot I just need to cut the piece of metal off so we can leave it in and get you out of here." Sage said when he saw her looking at the tool in his hand.

Hope nodded and stayed very still as he turned the tool on and cut the metal piece and then was gone. He came back with a harness and was slowly opening the door wider so he could come in part way.

"Okay I am going to unbuckle you and then I am going to put this harness around you so that we can lift you out." Sage said and smiled at her in reassurance.

"Alright." Hope said though her voice was a little shaky.

Sage reached over her and unbuckled her and carefully put the seatbelt away so it wouldn't hit her leg. He then slowly got her arms through the harness and got the buckle between her legs and up to the chest buckle. He put his hand under her right leg and grasped the metal rod and pulled it out of the seat and then signaled to his team that he was ready.

"Alright now I am going to attach the line to you and they will bring you up." Sage said.

Hope nodded and let him clip the line on her harness but tensed a little when he guided her to the edge of her seat.

"Its alright they got you, they will have you." Sage said softly.

Hope nodded and let him guide her the rest of the way out of the car. She clung to the line as she was pulled up the street and set gently on the ground. Hope sighed with relief and then sat up even though the paramedics motioned for her to stay on the ground. She looked over and was relieved when she saw the man named Sage on the street beside the car. She was glad that they got here in time and she didn't fall to her death. She grimaced when they probed her right leg near the metal rod. Well, she thought, this was a great way to start her day.

"Ma'm we need you to lie on this stretcher so we can get you to the hospital." One of the paramedics said.

Hope nodded and lay down on the stretcher though she hated the idea of going to the hospital. She looked over and saw that the Firefighter named Sage was talking to his Captain and his co-workers. She sighed and closed her eyes, wishing she were just home in her bed.

"We're losing her. Her breathing stopped. Get her in the ambulance now! And get her on oxygen." One of the paramedics said as they rushed her to the ambulance.

Sage looked over quickly when he heard that the paramedics were losing her. He prayed that they got her back, he would like to get to know her, and she seemed like a great woman.

Hope felt people around her pushing at her chest and she wished that they would just leave her alone. But they didn't seem to get the point so she had no choice but to come up.

"She's breathing and her eyes are opening. M'am are you alright?" The paramedic asked.

"Yea, sorry if that worried you. That happens sometimes." Hope said shrugging slightly.

"You mean you stop breathing sometimes?" The paramedic asked shocked.

"Yes, I don't know why but the doctor said it was nothing to worry about. I always breathe after a minute, but I think the accident caused this one." Hope said.

"Well we are going to get you to the hospital and get you all cleaned up. Sage will ride with us so you will have someone you know." The paramedic said and scooted to the head of her to let Sage in.

"I am glad that you are alright, I heard that you stopped breathing, it worried me." Sage said.

"I am fine, that happens to me." Hope said smiling.

"You stop breathing, that's normal for you?" Sage asked astonished.

"Yea, though this one was worse cause of the accident and the blood loss." Hope said softly.

"Well I am glad you are alright. Now you said you were hit on the highway. Who hit you?" Sage asked.

"I don't know it was just someone in a green ford truck. It was a man I think but he was wearing a baseball hat and sun glasses." Hope said.

"Did he stop after he hit you?" Sage asked.

"No he just kept driving, he even looked like he was going faster." Hope said.

Sage thought that was weird, even hit and runs they didn't go faster when they hit someone, they just kept going at the same pace.

"Could you tell if he was aiming at you?" Sage asked softly.

"Not really I thought that he just lost control of his car but he looked intent." Hope said shuddering.

"It's alright, you are going to be fine." Sage said taking her hand and holding it in his.

"Do you think it was just a hit and run?" Hope asked curious at the tingling feeling that his hand on hers was causing.

"I cannot say for sure but I don't think it was, but you will have to tell this to the police and they can tell you if it was or wasn't and what they are going to do." Sage said giving her a reassuring smile.

"Well this was a great way to start my day." Hope said laughing.

"Yes, lets just try not to make this an everyday occurrence." Sage said smiling.

"Believe me, once was enough to last me a life-time." Hope said seriously.

"Good. How are you feeling?" Sage asked.

"Alright I guess, my legs hurt but that's to be expected with a rod sticking out of one of them." Hope said smiling.

"They will give you some pain meds at the hospital." Sage said.

"Thanks for rescuing me." Hope said even though she knew it was just his job.

"It was my pleasure. I know this is sudden but I was wondering if I could have your number, I would like to be able to call you and see how you are doing." Sage asked hoping she didn't find that creepy or weird.

Hope nodded and let him write down her cell number, happy to know that he cared enough to want to check on her. Hope closed her eyes, just wanting to go to sleep.

"Hope stay awake for me." Sage said squeezing her hand.

Hope woke up and looked at Sage, he looked worried; he must think that she might stop breathing again. She fought hard to stay awake, she didn't want to scar Sage.

"Are we almost there?" Hope asked.

"Yes we just reached the hospital. I will have to leave you, but I will be calling to check on you." Sage said.

Hope nodded and was glad that she carried her phone and wallet in her pockets. She didn't like a purse and rarely used them anymore unless she needs the carrying space. Hope watched as she was unloaded and then watched as he was taken back in the fire truck. She hoped she heard from him soon, she liked him, but she hoped she wasn't getting her hopes up with this. She groaned she was going to have to let Rachel know what happened to her.

"M'am before we take you into surgery is there anyone you want us to call." The nurse next to her asked.

Hope nodded and told them Rachel's number and then was taken into surgery.


End file.
